History of Jainism

The history of Jainism, one of the world’s ancient religions, dates back to the 6th century BC, when Lord Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara, spread his teachings in ancient India. Jainism emphasizes non-violence (ahimsa), truth, non-attachment, and spiritual liberation through ascetic practices. Its rich historical narrative includes a legacy of teachings, ethical principles, and philosophical depth that have significantly influenced Indian culture, spirituality, and philosophy. The influence of Jainism can be seen in art, literature, and social norms, reflecting its profound role in shaping the cultural ethos of India. Religion continues to inspire individuals around the world, fostering a legacy of compassion, ethical living, and the pursuit of enlightenment.

History of Jainism

Introduction

Jainism is a religion founded in ancient India. Jains trace their history through twenty-four Tirthankaras and honor Rishabhanatha as the first Tirthankara of Jainism (in the current time cycle). The last two Tirthankaras, the 23rd Tirthankara Parshvanatha (c. 9th–8th century BCE) and the 24th tirthankara Mahavira (c. 599–c. 527 BCE), are considered historical figures. According to Jain texts, the 22nd tirthankara, Neminatha lived about 5000 years ago and was a cousin of Krishna. The two main sects of Jainism, Digambara Jainism and Svetambara Jainism, probably began to form around the 3rd century BCE, and the schism was completed by about the 5th century CE. These sects later split into several sub-sects, such as the Sthānakavāsī and the Terapanthis. Many of its historic temples that still exist today were built in the 1st millennium AD. After the 12th century, the temples, pilgrimages, and naked (skyclad) ascetic tradition of Jainism suffered persecution during Muslim rule, except Akbar, whose religious tolerance and support for Jainism led to a temporary ban on animal slaughter during the Jain religious festival of Dasa Lakshana. Jainism rejects the concept of a creator and founder. In the current half-cycle of the universe, Aadinatha was the first Tirthankara

Origins of Jainism

• (1) The origins of Jainism are obscure. Jains claim that their religion is eternal and consider Rishabhanatha to be the founder of the current time cycle, who lived 8,400,000 Purva years. Rishabhanatha is the first Tirthankar of the 24 Tirthankars, who is considered by modern historians to be a mythical figure based on loose supports. Different scholars had different opinions about the origin. Some artifacts found in the Indus Valley Civilization have been suggested to be linked to the ancient Jain culture, but this is a highly speculative and subjective interpretation. Some scholars speculate that Jain traditions may date back to the Indus Valley Civilization and that Vardhamana, rather than a “founder” in his own right, was more of a leader and restorer of a much older tradition.
• (2) According to the 1925 Chirayu proposal, the origin of Jainism can be traced back to the 23rd Tirthankara Parshvanatha (ca. 8th–7th century BCE) and considers the first twenty-two Tirthankaras to be legendary mythical figures. According to further investigation by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the first Vice President of India, Jainism existed long before the Vedas were composed. The last two Tirthankaras, Parshvanatha and Mahavira, are considered historical figures. Mahavira was a contemporary of Gautama Buddha. Gautam Buddha established his own mythic and loose tradition because of his inability to follow Jainism. According to Jain texts, the 22nd Tirthankara Neminatha lived about 85,000 years ago and was a cousin of Krishna.

Tirthankaras of Jainism

Jain texts and traditions believe in 24 Tirthankaras. They are depicted as five to a hundred times taller than average human beings and have lived for thousands of years in the Jain tradition. Historians only consider the latter two generally based on historical figures from the 1st millennium BC. Buddhist sources do not mention Mahavira as the founder of the new tradition but as part of the Nirgranthas (knotless) ascetic tradition. This has led scholars to conclude that Mahavira was not the founder but a reformer of the tradition, like his predecessor Parsvanatha.

(1) Mahavira

During the 6th century BCE, Mahāvīra became one of the most influential teachers of Jainism. Jains worship him as the twenty-fourth and last Tirthankara of the present cosmic age. Although Mahavira is sometimes mistaken for the founder, he appears in tradition as the one who followed, from the beginning, a religion established long ago. Mahavira left his home at the age of 30 and meditated for 12 years until he became a ‘other’, aka a conqueror.

(2) Parshvanatha

There is reasonable historical evidence that the 23rd Tirthankara, Parshvanatha, the predecessor of Mahavira, lived somewhere in the 9th–7th century BC.

(3) Rishabhanatha

The Vedas mention the name Rishabha. However, the context in the Rigveda, Atharvaveda, and the Upanishads suggests that it means the one with the sign of the bull, or sometimes “the most excellent of all”. In some Hindu beliefs, it is an epithet of the Hindu god Shiva. Hindu texts such as the Bhagavata Purana include Rishabha as an avatar of Vishnu.

(4) Other Tirthankaras

Ajitnath, Shambavanatha, Abhinandana, Sumathinatha, Padmaprabha, Suparshvanath, Chandraprabha, Pushpadanta, Sheetalnath, Shreyansnath, Vasupujya, Vimalanathan, Ananthanatha, Dharmanatha, Armanatha, Arnathu Shantina, Malltha, and Neminatha.

Lineage of Jaina Tirthankaras

After the nirvana of Parshvanatha, his disciple Subhadatta became the head of the monks. Subhadatta was followed by Haridatta, Aryasamudra, Prabha, and finally Kesi. The Uttaradhyayana, a Svetambara text contains records of a dialogue between Mahavira’s disciple and Kesi; Kesi along with his community accepted Mahavira as a tirthankara and as a result, became associated with him. Tirthankaras are believed in the Jain tradition to have attained omniscience, known as kevala jnana. After Mahavira, one of his disciples Sudharma Swami is said to have taken over. He was the head of the Jain community until 600 BC. After his death, Jambuswami, a disciple of Sudharma Swami, became the head of the monks. He was the head until 463 BC. Sudharma Swami and Jambu Swami are also traditionally said to have attained keval jnana. It is said that no one has achieved this since Jambu Swami.

Split of Jainism

The two main sects of Jainism, the Digambara and the Svetambara sects, probably began to form around the 3rd century BCE, and the split was completed by about the 5th century CE. These sects later split into several sub-sects, such as the Sthanakvasi and the Terapanthis. During the reign of Chandragupta Maurya, Acharya Bhadrabahu moved to Karnataka to survive a twelve-year famine. Sthulabhadra, a disciple of Acharya Bhadrabahu, stayed in Magadha. When the followers of Acharya Bhadrabahu returned, there was a dispute between them regarding the authenticity of the Jain Agam. Also, those who remained in Magadza began to wear white clothes, which was unacceptable to the others who remained naked. Thus the Digambara and Śvētāmbara sects arose, the Digambara being naked while the Svetambara were dressed in white. The Digambara saw this as antithetical to Jain principles, which they said required complete nudity for monks. Some interpret the presence of gymnosophists (“naked philosophers”) in Greek records as referring to the Digambaras Jain Sramana practice. The Vallabhi Council was established in 454 AD. At this council, Svetambara accepted their texts as the scriptures of Jainism. The Digambara sect completely rejects these biblical texts as they are not authentic. This 5th-century event cemented the split between these major traditions within Jainism. Early Jain paintings from Mathura depict Digambara iconography until the end of the fifth century AD when Svetambara iconography begins to appear.

Jainism related to Ajivika

• (1) Jainism is related to an extinct Indian religious tradition called Ajivika. The latter is mentioned in ancient texts of Jainism and Buddhism and is attributed to Makkhali Gosala, a contemporary of Buddha and Mahavira. The Jain Bhagavati Sutra refers to the founder of Ajivika as Gosala Mankhaliputta (“son of Mankhali”). The text depicts Gosala as Mahavira’s disciple for six years, after which the two parted ways and separated. The Bhagavati Sutra mentions the debate, disagreement, and subsequent “escalation” between the factions led by Mahavira and Gosala. Jainism also flourished during the Nanda Dynasty (424–321 BCE). Both Ajivika and Jainism promoted asceticism. This is the earliest documented schism between Mahavira and his probable disciple.
• (2) The oldest archaeological evidence is in the form of a naked headless torso discovered in 1937 near Patna (Bihar) which is called “Lohanipur Torso”. This has been dated by modern scholarship to about the 2nd century BC. It is a highly polished stone work of art in the exact human form, but it is unclear whether it belongs to Jainism, the Ajivikas, or some other Indian religious ascetic tradition. Even if it is not Buddhist and is nude like the Jinas, it may not be a Jain sculpture either, since it lacks Jain iconography and because similar high-quality Jain artworks have been absent for many centuries. Furthermore, Jain artworks that have been found from the same period in northern India show completely different forms and symbols. It may belong to the Ajivikas or another ancient Indian nude ascetic tradition, but it is also not possible to rule out that it may reflect the art of Jainism in the 2nd century BC. Ancient nude terracotta sculptures discovered in the 1970s near Ayodhya are similar to the Lohanipur torso, but terracotta art is also absent from the Jain tradition, and the Ayodhya terracotta sculptures also lack Jain iconography.

Political History of Jainism

Information regarding the political history of Jainism is certain. Jains consider King Bimbisara, also popularly known as Shrenik (c. 558–491 BCE), Ajatashatru (c. 492–460 BCE), Ashoka and Udajina (c. 460–440 BCE) of the Haryanka dynasty as patrons of Jainism. –

(1) Mauryan Empire

Ashoka (273–232 BCE), grandson of Chandragupta, followed and was inspired by Jain ideologies. In Ashoka’s edicts, there is a mention of Jinas, where the duties of dhamma mahatmas (legal authorities) are discussed. Ashoka’s grandson Samprati (c. 224–215 BCE) is also said to have supported Jainism along with a Jain monk named Suhasti, according to tradition. He lived in a place called Ujjain. He is believed to have built many Jain temples, and temples whose origins are forgotten have often been attributed to him in later times.

(2) Mahameghavahana Dynasty

Emperor Kharavela of the Mahameghavahana dynasty was religiously tolerant while being a patron of Jainism. Inscriptions found at Udayagiri mention that he built a statue of Rishabhanatha, the first Tirthankara, and made cave dwellings for monks. In the first century AD, Acharya Bhutabali led a group of Jain monks to the caves surrounding Madurai to spread Jainism. According to the Ashokavadana, a non-Buddhist in Pundravardhana drew a picture showing the Buddha bowing at the feet of the Nirgrantha leader Jnatiputra. The term Nirgrantha (‘freed from bonds”) was originally used for the pre-Jain ascetic order, but later came to be used for Jain monks. “Jnatiputra” is identified with Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism. Legend has it that on the complaint of a Buddhist devotee, Ashoka, influenced by his cunning wife Tishyaraksha, issued an order to arrest a non-Buddhist artist, followed by another order to kill all the Ajivikas in Pundravardhana. About 18,000 followers of the Ajivika sect were executed as a result of this order. Some time later another follower of Nirgrantha drew a similar picture in Pataliputra. Ashoka, again swayed by the wily Tishyaraksha, burnt him and his entire family alive in their house. He also announced the award of one dinar (silver coin) to anyone who brought him the head of the heretic Nirgrantha. According to the Ashokavadana, as a result of this order, his brother was mistaken for a heretic and killed by a cowherd. Ashoka realized his mistake and withdrew the order. and returned to following Jainism.

(3) Indo-Scythian rule

According to von Glasenapp’s chronicle, Gardabhilla (c. 19th century BCE), king of Ujjain, kidnapped a nun who was the sister of a Jain monk named Kalaka. The brother sought the help of the Indo-Scythian ruler Saka Sahi. The Saka went to war with Gardabhilla, defeated him, and drove out the king of Ujjain. The Sakas settled in new lands and “danced like bees” around the feet of the monk Kalaka. The story continues with the son of the defeated king Gardabhilla, Vikramaditya. He is said to have defeated the Sakas, driven them out, followed Jainism himself, and given ancient India the Vikram calendar with a zero date of 57 or 58 BC. The story is probably true as the expulsion of the Sakas by Vikramaditya has a complete historical basis. The Jains did not follow the Vikram zero year and instead used Mahavira’s moksha date as their zero year Vira Nirvana Samvat, the oldest system of chronological reckoning still in use in India. The use of the Vikrami calendar has been surprisingly widespread in Hinduism. According to Heinrich von Stietencron, the interaction between Vikramaditya and the Sakas took place many centuries later. According to another Jain legend, King Salivahana of the late 1st century CE was a patron of Jainism, as were many others in the early centuries of the 1st millennium CE. But, says von Glasenapp, the historicity of these stories is difficult to establish.

(4) British Rule

The era of British colonial rule, according to von Glasenapp in 1925, allowed the Jains to continue their religion without the persecution they faced earlier. The British government further encouraged trade, which enabled members of the Jain community to pursue their traditional economic activities. According to von Glasenapp, Jain merchants and Jainism prospered during this period and used their financial success during the British Raj to rebuild Jain temples. For example, the Dharmanatha temple was built in Ahmedabad (Gujarat) in 1848. The British census reported a decline in the Jain population between 1891 and 1921 from 1.417 million to 1.179 million. This may be from Jain conversions to Hinduism and causes such as famines and epidemics. In contrast, M. Whitney Kelting states in 2001 that in Gujarat and Maharashtra, British traders took over the trades traditionally practiced by Jains. It was partly responsible for the major migrations of the Jain community during the British colonial era. The British colonial government in India, as well as the princely states of India, passed laws that made monks roam the streets naked a crime that led to arrest. This law particularly affected monks of the Digambara tradition. The Akhil Bharatiya Jaina Samaj opposed the bill, arguing that it interfered with the religious rights of Jains. Acharya Shantisagar entered Bombay (now Mumbai) in 1927 but was forced to cover his body. He then led a journey across India as a naked monk with his followers to various Digambara holy places and was welcomed by the provincial kings of Maharashtra. Shanti Sagar fasted to oppose the restrictions imposed on Digambara monks by the British Raj and to instigate their suspension. Colonial-era laws that banned nude monks were repealed after India gained independence.

Interaction with other religions

Jainism coexisted with Hinduism and Buddhism in ancient and medieval India. Many of its historic temples were built near Buddhist and Hindu temples in the 1st millennium AD.

(1) Buddhism

• (a) Mahavira and Buddha are generally accepted as contemporaries (c. 5th century BC). Buddhist texts refer to Mahavira as Nigantha Nataputta. Buddhist scriptures record that during Prince Siddhartha’s ascetic life (before he attained enlightenment and became the Buddha), he underwent many of the fasts, penances, and austerities mentioned in the Jain tradition. The Buddha tried the ascetic methods found in Jainism, abandoning that path and teaching the Middle Way instead. Many suttas of Buddhism state about Nigantha Nataputta. Buddha disagreed with Mahavira’s concept of soul or self (jiva). Similarly, he found the Jain theory of karma and rebirth incompatible and inflexible with his ideas about them.
• (b) During the time of Mahavira and the Buddha, two ascetic śramanic religions competed for followers as well as the commercial trade networks that sustained them. Their interaction with each other along with Hindu traditions has been significant, and in some cases, the titles of Buddhist and Jain texts are the same or similar but represent different doctrines. Jainism had a tradition of itinerant mendicants, with less emphasis on the monastic style of living for monks. Buddhism, on the other hand, emphasized sangha, or monasteries. According to Akira Hirakawa, monasteries were an easier target for destruction and removal, and Buddhism almost disappeared from the Indian subcontinent after the Muslim invasions. In contrast, itinerant beggars and the Jain tradition survived during this period of religious violence and unrest.

(2) Hinduism

According to Jain texts, some of the Hindu gods are blood relatives of the legendary Tirthankara. Neminatha, for example, the 22nd Tirthankara, is a cousin of Krishna in the Jain Puranas and other texts. However, Jain scholars such as Haribhadra also wrote satires on the Hindu gods, ridiculing them with new outrageous stories where the gods behave unethically and act unethically. Some Jain writers record Hindu gods as chasing, tempting, fearing, or serving the legendary Jina before he attains omniscience. In other stories, Hindu deities such as Vishnu, Rama and Sita come to pay homage to Jina at a major Jain pilgrimage site such as Mount Shatrunjaya and Mount Sammed Shikhar Ji. Minor Hindu scholars rewrote the original prehistoric stories into their Hindu versions. According to Paul Dundas, aimed at the Hindu lay economic community, these satires were a means of inculcating piety and subverting the true religious teachings offered by their Jain neighbors. True to their origins, Buddhist and Hindu scholars engaged in the creation of similar satire, mythology, and parody-filled fiction directed at Jains and each other. The emergence of major philosophical ideas in Hinduism influenced Jainism. According to von Glasenapp’s 1925 publication, around the 8th century CE, Adi Shankara introduced the Advaita doctrine and either converted the Jain temples into Hindu temples or destroyed them completely. Vaishnavism and Shaivism also began to rise. This, von Glasenapp states, contributed to the decline of the “Jaina Church”, especially in South India.

(3) Shaivism

Shaivite poets like Sambandar, Appar (c. 7th century CE), Sundarar, and Manikkavacakar introduced Shaivism to Jainism. Under these influences, the Jain kings became Shaivites. Sambandar converted the current Pandya king to Shaivism. The rulers of the Chola dynasty also supported Shaivism. According to Shaivite legend, there was an alleged massacre of 8,000 Jain monks in the 7th century. This was first stated in the 11th-century Tamil text Nambiyandar Nambi na Sampantara. According to this text, a 7th-century Shaivite saint defeated Jain monks in a series of debates and contests on philosophy, thus converting a Jain Pandyan king, variously called “Koon Pandiyan” or “Sundara Pandyan” in legend, to Shaivism. . Subsequently, the king reportedly ordered 8,000 Jains to be impaled. This event is not mentioned in the Campantar texts, nor any other Hindu or Jain texts for four centuries. After Nampi Antar, the story appears in many versions. Scholars question whether this story is a fiction created in the 11th century or reflects an actual massacre. KA Nilakanta Sastri falsely states that the story is “little more than an unpleasant legend and cannot be treated as history”.

(4) Lingayatism

According to the British scholar von Glasenapp, during the 11th century, Basava, a minister of the Jain king Bijjala II, converted numerous Jains to Lingayatism, which was hostile to the Jains. According to legend, they destroyed various temples belonging to the Jains and adapted them to their use. A saint named Ekdanta Ramaya further propagated free-standing Lingayatism. He persuaded Bijjala II to grant land near Abdur for a Shiva temple. Lingayatism gradually spread. It was the state religion in Telugu and Kannada-speaking territories such as the Wodeyars of Mysore and Ummatur (1399–1610) and the Nayaks of Keladi (1550–1763). They were hostile to the Jains. In 1683, they imprinted the linga symbol on the main basis of the Jains in Halebid. Jains were forced to perform Shiva rites.

(5) Vaishnavism

According to von Glasenapp’s writing of the 1920s, the Hoysala king Bitti Deva (c. 1108–1152 AD) is said to have converted from Jainism and became a follower of Ramanuja. According to more contemporary scholars, such as T. K. Tukol, Bitti Deva’s government did not persecute or force the conversion of Jains. He converted, but his queen Shantaladevi remained a Jaina. She was a patron of the arts and built Jain temples. General and Prime Minister Bitti Deva Gangaraja, says Tukol, was “a Jaina who, under the guidance of his Guru Subhachandra, did many deeds of piety and religion to further the cause of Jainism”. Bittideva employed a general who was a Jaina lady named Jakkiyabbe. Temples for all the 24 Tirthankars were installed during his time. The Vijayanagara king Bukka Raya I, von Glasenapp states, ensured that both Vaishnava and Jain traditions enjoyed equal cultural and religious freedoms, and helped repair Jain temples. Anandatirtha, a Hindu thinker, preached a dualistic theology that attracted many Jains to convert to Hinduism.

(6) Islam

Muslims who conquered parts of North India, like Mahmud Ghazni (1001 AD) and Mohammad Ghori (1175 AD) oppressed the Jain community. Jainism faced persecution during and after the Muslim conquests of the Indian subcontinent. This period witnessed the destruction of Jain temples, their pilgrimage centers, and other forms of persecution. There were prominent supporters of Jainism, such as Emperor Akbar (1542–1605), whose non-call for tolerance, out of pity for the Jains, ordered the release of caged birds and banned the killing of animals at the Jain festival of Paryushan. After Akbar, the Jains faced an intense period of Muslim persecution in the 17th century. Jain scholars of the Mughal era discussed religious ideas with Muslim scholars. Hiravijaya in chapters thirteen and fourteen of the Hira Saubhagya, for example, presents the interaction and perspectives of the two religions. The text about him mentions a Muslim sheik that “a creator god (called Khuda) is impossible; he who presides over others, bestows reward and punishment”, instead it is karma that determines a person’s ultimate destiny. He argues that the two religions are different; Islam involves violence, while Jainism is based on compassion. Jain scholars supported Akbar, and Jain texts praise his religious tolerance. According to Paul Dundas, in the 12th century and beyond, Muslim destruction caused Jain scholars to reconsider their theory of Ahimsa (non-violence). For example, Jinadatta Suri wrote in the 12th century, at a time of widespread destruction of Jain temples and the blocking of Jain pilgrimages by Muslim armies, that “anyone engaged in religious activity who was forced to fight and kill someone” self-consciously. After the 12th century, temples, pilgrimages, and the tradition of Jainism of the naked ascetic Digambaras during the Muslim rule of persecution, except Akbar, whose religious tolerance and support of Jainism led to a temporary ban on the killing of animals during the Jain religious festival of Paryusan.

(7) Christianity

British-era Christian invaders wrote about Jainism, but typically stereotyped it as “a coldly austere religion of pure asceticism, without a ‘heart’ concerned only with not harming microorganisms”. The discussion emphasized ascetic extremes rather than values. They have criticized Jain’s theories of nonviolence, arguing that this value is essentially equivalent to “doing nothing” because it means “not harming” other beings but does not require a “positive ethic of helping someone who is suffering”. According to Jeffrey Long, these missionary writings were a distortion of Jain theology because Jainism teaches, values ​​and has a historical record of charity and compassion is a core value in Jainism for spiritual development. Some Christian writers have criticized Jainism for its cosmology, with extraordinary time scales and cyclical periods. However, long states, genesis theories in Christianity and other religions suffer from the same problems and present the world as if it had been created several thousand years ago, in a short period. Similarly, historical Christian writers criticized the lack of “saving grace” in Jainism. For example, Sinclair Stevenson wrote in 1915 that “the heart of Jainism was empty because it lacked the saving grace of Jesus”.

Jain Tirthankaras in Hindu Temples

Jain and Hindu communities were often very close and mutually accepting. Some Hindu temples included a Jain Tirthankara in their premises as a place of honor. Similarly, numerous temple complexes contain both Hindu and Jain monuments, the most famous being the cave temples of Badami and Khajuraho.

Jain Literature

• (1) It is not clear when the Jain writings were written down, with the earliest extant Jain manuscripts dating from the 11th century A.D. Jain literature, like Buddhism and Hinduism, is believed to have been transmitted by oral tradition. The lyrics have largely been lost over time. The Svetambara tradition has a collection of Agamas and texts believed to be ancient. However, the Digambara sect of Jainism rejects the authority of the Jain Agamas in the Svetambara tradition. They believe that in the time of Dharasena, the twenty-third teacher after Indrabhuti Gautama, the knowledge of only one Anga survived. It was about 683 years after Mahavira’s Nirvana. After Dharasena’s disciples Pushpadanta and Bhutabali, this too was lost. Over time, the Svetambara canons were also gradually lost. About 980 to 993 years after Mahavira’s death, a council was held at Vallabhi in Gujarat. This was led by Devardhi Ksamashramana. The 12th Anga, Ditthivaya, was also found to be lost. The other Angas were enrolled. This is the traditional description of the schism. According to Svetambara, there were eight schisms (Nirvana).
• (2) According to Digambaratradition,n Ganadhara knew fourteen Purvas and eleven Angas. The knowledge of Purva was lost about 436 years after Mahavira, and Anga was lost about 683 years after Mahavira. Texts that do not belong to Anga are called Angabahyas. There were fourteen Angabahyas. The first four Angabahayas—Samayika, Chaturvimasvika, Vandana, and Pratikramana—respond to sections of the second Mulasutra of Svetambara. The only Angabahyas that occur in the Svetambara texts are the Dasavaikalika, Uttaradhyayana, and Kalpavyavahara. Umaswati’s Tattvartha Sutras are accepted as authoritative texts by all Jain traditions. Kundakunda’s mystical texts are revered in the Digambara tradition. A text on the differences between the Digambara and Svetambara sects of Jainism was composed by Hemraj Pande in 1652 on behalf of Chaurasi Bol.

Conclusion

The collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization in 1500 BCE was associated with the arrival of Indo-Europeans from Central Asia, who eventually wrote the Vedas, a series of religious hymns that form the basis of modern Hinduism. Historians can date the twenty-third Tirthankara to around 700 BC. The twenty-fourth and last Tirthankara lived around 500 BC and was a contemporary of Buddha, who founded the religion of Buddhism. As practitioners of non-violence, Jains depended on the goodwill of kings throughout Indian history. The rulers of Indian kingdoms occasionally patronized Jainism and built temples for Jains, although Jain rulers were few and far between, and most at this time were Hindus or Buddhists. However, Jainism and Buddhism were occasionally challenged by the priestly caste of Hinduism, who saw these religions as a challenge to their power. In medieval India, Jains faced persecution,, especially from the Muslim sultanates who conquered northern India. In modern times, Jains are a small minority in India. While roughly 6 million Indians practice Jainism, they are outnumbered by Indian Buddhists, Sikhs, Christians, and Hindus.

(FAQ) Questions and Answers about the History of Jainism